We discuss 10 movies like the popular Netflix film Slumberland that you must watch. Check out these brilliant recommendations.
Slumberland is a fantastical film that shows how a young girl uses dreams to feel some sort of connection to her late father. The dreamland he used to go to by telling her stories is all she had left of him.
In some moments, young Nemo (Marlow Barkley) grounds the dreamlike fantasy with her grieving. The story works when Nemo is in reality with her uncle Philip (Chris O’Dowd). Trying to navigate her father’s death is one thing, but then being linked to a fantasy dream world with him is her comfort. Her dad Peter (Kyle Chandler), would tell her wonderful stories and share the time he spent in Slumberland with her.
The movies on this list all have a fantasy world that the characters fall into. Whether it’s a dreamland, wonderland, or even a different timeline through time travel, their stories are deeply rooted in family affairs.
10 movies like Slumberland you must watch
Sweet Girl (2021)
Even though this film is rated R, Jason Momoa gets out his protective instincts. A devastated husband vows to bring justice to the people responsible for his wife’s death while protecting the only family he has left: his daughter, as per the synopsis on IMDB. This is something we’re used to seeing from Momoa, he is just a more playful version of this in Slumberland.
The Adam Project (2022)
This is probably the most under-appreciated fantasy film of 2022 and it was wonderful. The story spans three generations of Reed men as they take a liking to time travel.
After accidentally crash-landing in 2022, time-traveling fighter pilot Adam Reed (Ryan Reynolds) teams up with his 12-year-old self (Walker Scobell) for a mission to save the future, as per the synopsis on IMDB.
This cast is wonderful, and Scobell is exactly how you would think Reynolds would be as a young kid. Incredible casting with a heartfelt story, what more could you want from a sci-fi comedy?
The Chronicles of Narnia (2005)
Unfortunately, Narnia had to go head-to-head with Harry Potter but it was just as fantastical in its world-building. When four kids travel through a wardrobe to the land of Narnia and learn of their destiny to free it with the guidance of a mystical lion, as per the synopsis on IMDB.
Director Andrew Adamson truly brought these characters to life and made audiences feel like they were transported to another world after walking through that wardrobe.
Alice in Wonderland (2010)
Alice is one character that spirals into the depths of a rather peculiar world. It is a parallel of Alice going through her own struggles mentally, and it’s a rather interesting take.
When Tim Burton decided to take on the character, he definitely brought the whimsical nature needed to make this a wonderful adventure. Everyone in this cast had the freedom to do as they wished because Burton was able to pull out that fun side.
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
One of the very first films to completely transport the viewer into another world through a tornado was The Wizard of Oz.
Not only was it wonderful because of the technicolor but the story is heartfelt. When Dorothy (Judy Garland) and her dog Toto have swept away from Kansas to the magical land of Oz, they meet three new friends who help them get to the Emerald City to speak to the wizard and return home.
But they have to deal with the Wicked Witch of the West, who is obsessed with getting her sister’s ruby slippers off Dorothy’s feet.
The Princess Bride (1987)
Rob Reiner’s The Princess Bride is a cult classic that is beloved by all. It combines the two levels of storytelling that connects with audiences. One from the perspective of a young boy and his grandfather retelling the fairytale, and the actual characters from the novel itself. It’s so fun, campy, and of course, romantic as Cary Elwes and Robin Wright have wonderful chemistry.
Jumanji (1995)
As children, we have always wanted to be part of a different world because they’re more magical than the reality we live in. When Jumanji came out, board games were totally seen in a different light.
Two children open an old board game and start to play it, as they move across the board, things start to happen in the house, and a man who had been living in the game comes to visit them. In order to close the game for good, they have to finish it.
Willow (1998)
Director Ron Howard took on the fantastical with Willow and George Lucas had a hand in the script. When a young farmer is chosen to undertake a perilous journey in order to protect a special baby from an evil queen, as per the synopsis on IMDB. It does feel similar to The Princess Bride in the way it was filmed, but the story with Willow is pure magic and Val Kilmer is wonderful in this as well.
The School for Good and Evil (2022)
In the Netflix fantasy film, two best friends, Sophie and Agatha find themselves on opposing sides of an epic battle when they’ve swept away into an enchanted school where aspiring heroes and villains are trained to protect the balance between Good and Evil, as per the synopsis on IMDB. Director Paul Feig paints a fun film with interesting characters who undergo some healthy competition.
The Princess (2022)
It’s always fun to see more films with young women channeling their inner power to become badass, and that’s what Joey King does in The Princess. When a strong-willed princess refuses to wed the cruel sociopath, she is kidnapped and locked in a remote tower of her father’s castle, With her vindictive suitor intent on taking her father’s throne, the princess must save the kingdom, as per the synopsis on IMDB.
Do you have any other recommendations for movies like Slumberland? Let us know!
